Retiree Turns Scrap Metal Into Art

2006 - Volume #30, Issue #1, Page #20

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Welding steel into a giant foot with a swollen toe is a far cry from the elevators, feed mills and fertilizer plants Ken Nyberg helped build in his 42 years of construction work.
    But it was a lot more interesting, and it has led to an interesting new hobby/career.
    Nyberg's sculptures - all welded from scrap steel - are displayed in an outdoor gallery in a park named after him in his hometown of Vining, Minn. Commissioned works dot other area communities including an otter in the city of Ottertail, a panther in Parkers Prairie, a sunflower at a seed business in Breckenridge, and a stethoscope for a nearby medical clinic.
    His favorite subjects are mundane - a clothespin, a doorknob, a tipped coffee cup held up by the metal coffee pouring from it.
    Through his construction job, Nyberg became a good welder and learned how to improvise to make things work without detailed plans. He also had access to lots of scrap metal.
    In 1983 he made his first metal sculpture - a family tree for a wedding gift. For his next project, Nyberg planned to weld a foot with a swollen toe, based on something he'd whittled out of wood.
    "I thought, æthere won't be many of them around,' " he says. After 2 1/2 years the foot was finished, and in 1991 Vining citizens gave it a choice location along Highway 210, not too far from the town's Purple Palace restaurant. The town's landmark inspired the name for a new gas station - Big Foot Gas and Grocery.
    Since retiring in 2000, Nyberg has had more time to weld his creations. His process is always the same. He starts with a small figurine or a drawing and uses rebar and mild steel rod to create the basic shape.
    Occasionally he recycles items, such as the boatlift used for the foundation for a lion that Nyberg created for the Henning Lions Club. Once he has the shape, Nyberg welds scraps together "like making a crazy quilt."
    "I still use the old stick welder on most of the stuff," Nyberg says.
    Details require bending and cutting to get the pieces to form legs or faces, for example. Nyberg finishes most sculptors with good enamel paint.
    He revised his technique a bit a couple of years ago when he tackled a full-size elephant using a different material.
    One day, over coffee someone asked Nyberg if he was interested in a pile of worn-out lawn mower blades. Before thinking, he said, "yes" and then decided to make something really big - an elephant.
    The top of the elephant's head is 9 1/2 feet off the ground. Because the blades can't be tightly fitted together, Nyberg spot-welded the sculpture with a wire-feed welder. Light can be seen between the blades and in the circle- and star-shaped holes on the blades. It took 955 lawn mower blades to complete the pachyderm, and it required a small crane and trailer to move it to join his other creations in Vining's Nyberg Park. The elephant fits right in with the alien, the astronaut, the elk, the square knot and the cockroach in a pair of pliers.
    But when winter blows in, Nyberg likes to tackle bigger projects inside his shop. This year he's working on a 6-foot-6 Viking for the local Sons of Norway group. And he's collected about 1,200 more lawn mower blades.
    This time, Nyberg says, there's a rhino in there waiting to come out.
    Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Ken Nyberg, 22019 Teepee Circle, Vining, Minn. 56588 (ph 218 769-4316; ny3@prtel.com).

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Retiree Turns Scrap Metal Into Art FARM HOME Novelty Items Welding steel into a giant foot with a swollen toe is a far cry from the elevators feed mills and fertilizer plants Ken Nyberg helped build in his 42 years of construction work But it was a lot more interesting and it has led to an interesting new hobby/career Nyberg s sculptures - all welded from scrap steel - are displayed in an outdoor gallery in a park named after him in his hometown of Vining Minn Commissioned works dot other area communities including an otter in the city of Ottertail a panther in Parkers Prairie a sunflower at a seed business in Breckenridge and a stethoscope for a nearby medical clinic His favorite subjects are mundane - a clothespin a doorknob a tipped coffee cup held up by the metal coffee pouring from it Through his construction job Nyberg became a good welder and learned how to improvise to make things work without detailed plans He also had access to lots of scrap metal In 1983 he made his first metal sculpture - a family tree for a wedding gift For his next project Nyberg planned to weld a foot with a swollen toe based on something he d whittled out of wood I thought æthere won t be many of them around he says After 2 1/2 years the foot was finished and in 1991 Vining citizens gave it a choice location along Highway 210 not too far from the town s Purple Palace restaurant The town s landmark inspired the name for a new gas station - Big Foot Gas and Grocery Since retiring in 2000 Nyberg has had more time to weld his creations His process is always the same He starts with a small figurine or a drawing and uses rebar and mild steel rod to create the basic shape Occasionally he recycles items such as the boatlift used for the foundation for a lion that Nyberg created for the Henning Lions Club Once he has the shape Nyberg welds scraps together like making a crazy quilt I still use the old stick welder on most of the stuff Nyberg says Details require bending and cutting to get the pieces to form legs or faces for example Nyberg finishes most sculptors with good enamel paint He revised his technique a bit a couple of years ago when he tackled a full-size elephant using a different material One day over coffee someone asked Nyberg if he was interested in a pile of worn-out lawn mower blades Before thinking he said yes and then decided to make something really big - an elephant The top of the elephant s head is 9 1/2 feet off the ground Because the blades can t be tightly fitted together Nyberg spot-welded the sculpture with a wire-feed welder Light can be seen between the blades and in the circle- and star-shaped holes on the blades It took 955 lawn mower blades to complete the pachyderm and it required a small crane and trailer to move it to join his other creations in Vining s Nyberg Park The elephant fits right in with the alien the astronaut the elk the square knot and the cockroach in a pair of pliers But when winter blows in Nyberg likes to tackle bigger projects inside his shop This year he s working on a 6-foot-6 Viking for the local Sons of Norway group And he s collected about 1 200 more lawn mower blades This time Nyberg says there s a rhino in there waiting to come out Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Ken Nyberg 22019 Teepee Circle Vining Minn 56588 ph 218 769-4316; ny3@prtel com

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